Venezuela Is Running Out of Oil Storage Space Amid Tanker Curbs
Venezuela may soon have to start closing some oil wells as it runs low on storage capacity following last week''s tanker seizure and US plans to block other sanctioned vessels.
The U.S. has continued pursuing tanker seizures after intercepting two fully loaded cargoes of Venezuelan crude earlier this month. Venezuela's oil exports in December fell to about half the 950,000 bpd they averaged in November, according to preliminary figures.
Dec 31 (Reuters) - The accumulation of residual fuel inventories in Venezuela's onshore tanks is forcing state energy company PDVSA to resort to extreme solutions to avoid shutting down refining units, as a U.S. blockade stopping tankers that are under sanctions from entering and leaving the country cuts exports to a minimum, four sources said.
Since PDVSA's main joint-venture partner Chevron (CVX.N) has not suspended exports of the crude grades they jointly produce, most inventories at Venezuela's western region, where storage capacity is very limited, are close to normal levels, the documents showed.
Residual fuel destined for Asia Because it mostly produces extra-heavy crude that needs to be diluted for transportation and processed in complex refineries, Venezuela also produces high volumes of residual fuel, particularly high-sulfur fuel oil, which is typically exported to Asia.
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